THE recent resignation of David Coghlan, consultant
paediatrician to Cork University Hospital, prompts the question: “How
are we minding our children?”

He mentioned that 5% of the children of the region
should be receiving help from his unit, but he does not have the facilities
to see them all.

It’s time to start tackling the problems
another way by removing or minimising the causes?

Already we have made a start - our petrol is
now lead-free and our workplaces are non-smoking.

The Government must now drop its plans for incinerators,
build on the huge recycling effort that is being made, and take up
the challenge of waste minimisation and clean production.

Dutch paediatrician Dr ten Tusscher stated at
the EPA licence oral hearing on the proposed Ringaskiddy incinerators
that he has found, even at what were thought to have been acceptable
levels of dioxin contamination, physical and mental damage to children.

He said that while studies on the health effects
of incinerators had been conducted mostly on adults, children were
25 times more seriously affected.

Are we going to stand back and allow our various
government agencies forfeit our children’s health because they
cannot think of a better way of dealing with our rubbish?